Dish of the Day
Just some film musings of a more succinct, spontaneous and sometimes seditious nature:
Tuesday February 21, 2023
Recently in one of the Facebook movie chatrooms, someone claimed a fondness for “screwball comedies” but mistakenly thought the term referred to any kind of zany or madcap comedy…
… which prompted my response:
The distinguishing characteristic of a "screwball comedy" is its romantic interest or "battle of the sexes" so to speak where the female of the two is at least equal or even superior in matching wits against her male counterpart. It's a sub-genre of romantic comedy in which a screwball comedy's typical fast pace, overlapping dialogue, ridiculous situations and cynicism toward serious romantic emotions all contribute to this particular type of humorous send up. Thus, by definition, most comedy ensemble films, i.e. Marx Bros, Laurel and Hardy, etc. would not qualify, as funny as they can be.
Charles Coburn, Barbara Stanwyck, and Henry Fonda in The Lady Eve
Joan Blondell, Warren William in Gold Diggers of 1933
Some of the best screwball comedies came from Howard Hawks: i.e. Monkey Business (1952), His Girl Friday (1940) and Bringing Up Baby (1938). There are a few other prominent screwball comedies including It Happened One Night (1934) which is often mentioned as the first, although Bombshell (1933) and the romantic subplot of Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933) or even Blonde Crazy (1931) or The Patsy (1928) might qualify as well.
Another top of the line screwball comedy is The Lady Eve (1941) masterfully written and directed by Preston Sturges.
Henry Fonda, Barbara Stanwyck
This isn’t a “battle of the sexes” so much as a belittling of Henry Fonda’s character by the brazen but delectable Barbara Stanwyck playing a con artist who’s fallen in love with her mark. And it’s just what an easy mark he turns out to be that makes this totally unorthodox “courtship” so captivating. Besides, one can easily tell that both parties are having the time of their lives playing such eccentric but loveable characters. Sturges is at his most creatively inspired here with a wildly witty repartee perfectly matched by the naturally enlivened performers who deliver them. Charles Coburn, William Demarest, Eugene Pallette and an equine photobomber add immeasurably to the fun.
The Lady Eve will snake her way into your heart on TCM (updated) Tuesday, May 9 (2023) at 8:30 pm PDT.
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All responses are not only welcomed but encouraged in the comments section below.
Hope to see you tomorrow.
A.G.